Camping in the Bay Area and beyond

Published 4:00 am, Friday, July 15, 2005

The Bay Area has 50 campgrounds. The places below, which are not on reservation systems, include some of the best campsites in the region..

Bay Area

Pantoll, Mount Tamalpais State Park: The camp is nestled under a forest canopy, with two sensational trails nearby -- one into the redwood canyon of Steep Ravine, and the Sunset Trail across coastal grasslands for ocean views. (415) 388-2070.

Half Moon Bay State Beach: Access to the paved Coastal Trail provides the launch point for a great bike ride 5 miles north to Pillar Point Harbor and cheap kayak rentals and restaurants. The sites are level and grassy, largely open. (650) 726-8820.

Henry W. Coe State Park: From the Hunting Hollow Trailhead, it is a 5.8- mile hike or bike trek to Coit Lake and its primitive wilderness campground. From here, you can head farther into wilderness for a multi-day trip, with remote Mississippi Lake the crown jewel of the park's 87,000 acres of wildlands. (408) 779-2728.

Monterey: The Andrew Molera State Park walk-in campground once was famous for near-unlimited camping, but it was converted to 24 sites to stop "combat camping." A trail to the beach provides a chance for sea-otter sightings. (831) 649-2836 or (831) 667-2315. Options: China Camp and Kirk Creek, Los Padres National Forest.

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Pomo Canyon Walk-in, Sonoma Coast: This secluded, redwood-filled canyon, just over the ridge from the coast, has 24 campsites available on a first-come, first-served basis. A trail from the camp crosses the ridge and angles down to Shell Beach. (707) 875-3483.

Surfwood Walk-in, MacKerricher State Park: This is a series of 10 well- hidden and dispersed campsites. Sites 7 to 10 are set in lush forest, yet minutes from the ocean. Nearby is a seal-viewing deck, a quiet beach, a freshwater lake (Cleone), and a terrific bike ride (Old Haul Road). (707) 964- 9112.

Sinkyone Wilderness State Park: Usal Beach has 35 tent sites at the southern jump-off point for the Coast Trail, the 17-mile route north that provides primitive access to the Lost Coast. (707) 986-7711.

Best by reservation: MacKerricher State Park drive-in; Russian Gulch State Park; Van Damme State Park; Clear Lake State Park; Manchester State Park; Lake Sonoma boat-in; Salt Point State Park..

Tahoe/Plumas

Camino Cove, Union Valley Reservoir, Eldorado National Forest: Camino Cove is nestled on a peninsula with pretty views of the lake and the dramatic slopes of the Crystal Basin. The lake has six other campgrounds, including Azalea Cove (hike-in/boat-in) and Jones Fork, where no reservations are accepted. (530) 644-2349.

Yosemite Creek, Yosemite National Park: This is one of the few campgrounds in Yosemite that does not require a reservation, because it is remote, the most difficult to reach of all the drive-to camps in the park. It's set along a pretty stream near the north rim of the valley. (209) 372- 0200.